LIIDLII KUE/FORT SIMPSON - While the skies over Fort Simpson threatened to dampen Thomas Simpson School's annual corn boil on Sept. 4 and people were choosing to stay home, at least one person remained optimistic.

Warily watching the clouds, Kevin Menicoche, MLA for Nahendeh, said he was assured by principal Robert Byatt the sun always comes out for the corn boil day.

Rodney Leader, 13, sports some interesting headwear as he butters his corn at Thomas Simpson School's corn boil on Sept. 4. - Tim Edwards/NNSL photo

In answer to Byatt's prophetic proclamation, the clouds cleared and the sun shone as the event began and people lined up for food.

"It was calling for rain so I think probably some people might be giving it a miss, but people are coming in now," said Byatt, shortly after the event started at noon.

The annual event has been a tradition at the school for nearly a decade.

Byatt said the school usually feeds approximately 350 people.

"This year we had about 550 or 575 (cobs of corn). Some years we've had as many as a thousand cobs of corn, but there was a lot of giveaway afterwards," said Byatt.

There were about 40 kids involved in the preparation, some shucking the ears of corn, and some boiling the shucked cobs. Others fired up grills for hotdogs.

Amanda Burrill and Shelagh Byatt, both 17 and students at the high school, were operating the juice stand. They are both vegetarians, though Burrill said she makes an exception for meat from the land, and fish.

Asked what she thought about the corn boil, Burrill said "I really want some" with a laugh, as she was waiting for her shift at the stand to be over to get in on some corn.

At 12:15 p.m. there were around 60 people lined up for corn, and more were filing in - not just students, but also parents, RCMP, and other members of the community.

The reason was simple.

"(Corn's) pretty good," said Brendan Tsetso while waiting in line.

Menicoche asked the schools and teachers to "keep it up."

"It's been a fantastic day so far and it's always a good opportunity to meet the teachers that are returning for the school year and for the community to do the same."

Natalie Lavoie has been at the school for eight years and there has been a corn boil every year that she has been teaching there.

This year Lavoie is teaching fine arts, graphic arts, and fashion design.

"For us at (Thomas Simpson School), it's a chance to celebrate the start of the school year. We're all back, fresh, with ideas in mind, and looking forward to an exciting year," said Lavoie.